The Battle of Las Piedras was fought on May 18, 1811 as part of the

Rio de la Plata Rio or Río is the Portuguese and Spanish word for "river". The word also exists in Italian, but is largely obsolete and used in a poetical or literary context to mean "stream". Rio, RIO or Río may also refer to: Places United States * Rio, Fl ...

war of independence. It was a resounding victory for the revolutionary forces, led by

José Gervasio Artigas José Gervasio Artigas Arnal (; June 19, 1764 – September 23, 1850) was a soldier and statesman who is regarded as a national hero in Uruguay and the father of Uruguayan nationhood. Born in Montevideo, Artigas enlisted in the Spanish ...

Background and development of events

In 1810, the

May Revolution The May Revolution () was a week-long series of events that took place from 18 to 25 May 1810, in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. This Spanish colony included roughly the territories of present-day Argentina, ...

forced the Spanish to abandon

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, but they held on to the

Banda Oriental Banda Oriental (Eastern Bank), or more fully Banda Oriental del Río Uruguay, was the name of the South American territories east of the Uruguay River and north of Río de la Plata that comprise the modern nation of Uruguay, the modern state of Ri ...

(present-day Uruguay), as Spain moved the headquarters of the

Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata or Viceroyalty of Buenos Aires ( or Virreinato de Buenos Aires or ) meaning "River of the Silver", also called the "Viceroyalty of River Plate" in some scholarly writings, in southern South America, was ...

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

. At the beginning of April 1811, the revolutionary José Gervasio Artigas returned to the

with approximately 180 men provided by the Government of Buenos Aires. On April 11, he issued the Mercedes Proclamation, assuming control of the revolution. The Governor of Montevideo, Francisco Javier de Elío, appointed frigate-captain as the head of the forces loyal to Spain. Posadas installed his headquarters at San Isidro Labrador de Las Piedras near Montevideo, to provoke a decisive battle against the revolutionaries. Meanwhile, José Artigas was camped near Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe with an army of a thousand men. The army of Posadas counted 1230 men, of which some 200 would defect to Artigas in the midst of battle. The battle happened on May 18 at Las Piedras, and resulted in a total victory for the revolutionaries. José Posadas capitulated. It was at this occasion that Artigas pronounced his famous sentence "Clemencia para los vencidos, curad a los heridos, respetad a los prisioneros" (''Mercy to the vanquished, cure the injured, respect the prisoners''), an unusual decision in those times, referring to the Spanish wounded and prisoners. One of the casualties on the revolutionary side was Manuel Artigas, nephew of José Artigas. Both armies fought in the name of King

Ferdinand VII of Spain Ferdinand VII (; 14 October 1784 – 29 September 1833) was Monarchy of Spain, King of Spain during the early 19th century. He reigned briefly in 1808 and then again from 1813 to his death in 1833. Before 1813 he was known as ''el Deseado'' (t ...

Importance of the battle

Some historians consider the victory in the Battle of Las Piedras as crucial for the survival of the revolution in Uruguay and Argentina, after the defeats of General

Manuel Belgrano Manuel José Joaquín del Corazón de Jesús Belgrano (3 June 1770 – 20 June 1820), usually referred to as Manuel Belgrano (), was an Argentina, Argentine public servant, economist, lawyer, politician, journalist, and military leader. He to ...

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

and Paraná. After the battle, the Royalists remained in control of only

Colonia del Sacramento Colonia del Sacramento (; ) is a city in southwestern Uruguay, by the Río de la Plata, facing Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is one of the oldest towns in Uruguay and the capital of the Colonia Department. As of the 2023 census, it has a populatio ...

and

, which was finally taken by Carlos María de Alvear on June 20, 1814. The day of the battle, May 18, is now an official holiday in Uruguay. The date is also commemorated in the military and civilian honour, the 18 May 1811 Medal.

External links

Official website of the Bicentennial
{{Coord missing, Uruguay Colonial Uruguay Las Piedras 1811 Las Piedras Las Piedras Las Piedras 1811 in Uruguay May 1811 Las Piedras, Uruguay

Background and development of events

Importance of the battle

See also

External links